I am quite afraid, nationally and internationally speaking, -that Rough Times are gonna come. One to several years, to a decade plus, down the road. I personally think the odds of such are a good deal Better than Even. Valley Forge type hardships again, in place of Tomahawks, Blackhawks, et al.Often politically caused, -but such things are not my purpose or focus here. Its neccessary to briefly state that as much of the source. Natural disasters could play a large role here too.

In either or any event, -Let us all set about being Prepared and Ready!

Far Better to be some guerilla or other Survivor in the hills! -Than just another schlopp in whatever "powers that be"s Salt Mines! (if even that lucky). Things such as "Red Dawn" do come to mind. As do historical examples of all too rare "Lone Noahs". Who in retrospect saw what was a coming.

Again, -the focus is on being as Ready as one can be! No matter what the cause. This is just a general "reminder-mention", -towards such. [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]

That's got to be the understatement of the century.

Troy

Well here in the southwest we've been under a long term drought with occassional breaks, a steady influx of people into the area that doesn't look like it will end soon. At some point the resources here will reach their limit. All it will take a serious climatic episode to break the system. What happens to apparently civilized people when those kind of events happen? Civil unrest, violence, or worse. What if it were a global climatic change? I don't want any part of it.

But don't you think that every generation has dealt with rough times? I mean weren't there two "war to end all wars" in the 20th century alone? Not to mention all the other wars, oil crises X2, genocides multiple times, terrorism, and what has all of it led to?

I heard an interview with a teacher today who has been teaching for 70 years, 56 years in the same classroom! She said that teenagers today are just like teenagers have always been, except for one thing: they no longer have a desire to gain knowledge. They learn material for a test and that's all. I see the same thing in my tae kwon do school. The other night, our head teacher asked the class why they would want to do anything less than their best...no one had an answer.

I think this growing apathy is a result of information overload and a growing sense of despair. The kids, and adults for that matter have instant access to infinite information from all over the globe. It can be overwhelming, depressing and anxiety producing. It just happens.

Seen Johnny Mnemonic? The movie centers around a disease called NAS-Nerve Attenuation Syndrome...caused by overuse of technology and information overload. It is possible we are starting to seem something similar happen in our own society.

We have to take care of ourselves. If we feel overwhelmed by the things we see, we need to take care of our minds and souls. Meditate, pray, walk in a quiet place. Find the thing that helps us let go and re-center.

Yes, we need to prepare ourselves as best we can, but we also need to take care of ourselves so we can be as mentally prepared to handle whatever comes our way.

9/11, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, uncertain job markets...we are going through some rough times, with no certain end in sight. More rough times are ahead to be sure. But we must have faith that if we prepare ourselves as best we can, and help those around us prepare as well, those rough times will be more managable, and we will endure. And one day our descendents will look back at the work we did, the things we endured and say, "My goodness, those were rough times. How did they ever make it through that?"

Gather your supplies and tools, learn as much as you can, practice what you learn and help others when you can.

Rough times, yes. Insurmountable times, no.

So I'm watching an episode of Star Trek DS9 right now, entitled "Past Tense" where Sisko, Dax and Bashir are transported to 21st century Earth through a transporter malfunction. Sisko and Bashir are walking through a "sanctuary district" which is almost like a prison/slum area of a city and they are talking about the social problems of the era. Sisko mentions that in the US, in the early 21st century that people felt like the social problems were too enormous to deal with; it's not that people don't give a damn, it's just that they've given up. Bashir says, "Causing people to suffer because you hate them is terrible, but causing people to suffer because you have forgotten how to care...that's really hard to understand."

Bashir goes on to say "It makes you wonder, doesn't it? Are humans really any different that Cardassians, or Romulans? If push comes to shove, if something disasterous happens to the Federation, if we are frightened enough or desperate enough, how would we react? Would we stay true to our ideals, or would we just stay here, where we started?"

I have felt for a long time there has been incredible social commentary in the Star Trek series.

Sisko assures Bashir that the people in the early 21st century will remember how to care.

Let's not wait for more rough times to come. Remember how to care today, and maybe you can help someone else remember how to care too.

Turn off your TVs, it's a beautiful day to learn.... Self sufficiency, less dependency, fewer needs, preparedness.

I refuse to let the media knock down my door.

I think our future adults are in a world of hurt. They lack morals, values and most importantly work ethic. I have 15 yr old twins and I'm exposed to a lot of their peers. For the most part, their parents aren't involved in their lives as much as ours were. They are completely wrapped up in consumerism, I want this I'm gonna buy that but none of them want a job. They want mommy and daddy to get it for them. You are correct when you say they aren't interested in education. The don't have to be when everything is handed to them.

Our parents generation had chores from the time they were little. They knew the importance of education because their parents insisted they get good grades. Hard work wasn't a bad thing. My mother worked in a fish cannery in Monterey when she was 12-13 to help support her family during the depression.

I worked under the table at a friends Dad's concrete company from the time I was 13, digging footers and pouring concrete, washed dishes at Denny's and I bought my first car long before I was 16.

I'm sorry, I believe our youth are soft little cry babies. Heaven forbid SHTF now because they won't know what to do whe the batteries die on their I-pods.

Couldn't agree more!

I'm with you. When I start worrying about "ruff times" I just think about my parents and grandparents during the Great Depression, and our problems are kind of knocked back down to size.

All I can say is... agreed <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Troy